Saturday, 30 January 2010

As anyone who knows me or anyone who follows my posts knows, I am not a political person; what I do care about though are human beings, life in general, human rights and our safety. If the days and countless hours spent on this can help someone somewhere; I’ll be very happy.

As you know, I am a member of the British Psychological Society and the British Mensa Society. My background is in Psychology and Natural Medicine but within both fields I had to study a part of conventional science; not enough to be qualified to conduct my own scientific laboratory research, but enough to be able to bring you informed research from reliable medical sources - if there is such a thing nowadays. I say that because most scientific research nowadays has some invested interest somewhere, and results are sometimes dependent on who’s funding it.

Just recently, I’ve been engaged in more conversations about the swine flu (Influenza A or Gripe A) and the H1N1 vaccine than I care to mention. Many of my colleagues have had the vaccine and some have suffered adverse reactions to it; from headaches to vomiting. However, the biggest plea I received was from my mother who has also been vaccinated. She asked me to please prove the vaccine was safe and that it couldn’t cause cancer.

So, I decided to carry out my own independent research a) to see what I could come up with and b) to inform everyone, in simple terms, about the pros and cons of the vaccine and the flu itself.

I’ve tried to put together material from as reliable and accurate sources as possible. Please consider it very carefully and make your own formulated opinion. Please also consider that since I am not a laboratory researcher, I can only give you facts and data collated by third party scientists in their own research environments.

I wish I could be the one to give my mother good news but I’m not sure I can. My conclusion is that the vaccine does contain known cancer causing substances that are toxic to humans. However, there is some discrepancy as to what dosages are considered highly toxic. So, at this point nobody can predict what the long term side effects will be. Furthermore, everybody’s body will react in a different way; just as some people can smoke all their lives and never develop cancer, whilst others can’t.

By the same token, I can say that one of the vaccines being manufactured does contain a substance that, in laboratory rats, has been known to act as an anti-chemical carcinogenesis. Whether this works in humans is still unknown since clinical trials, with humans, have not yet been carried out.

I think, in all honesty, only the future will tell.

I’ve tried to do my best to bring you the breakdown of the chemical ingredients in the vaccine, and what they’re used for. The rest is up to you to get more information, be aware, take responsibility and do your due diligence.

Be safe. I value every living being.

Background Information

There is a wealth of information on the Internet about the Influenza A. I am not going to reiterate here. However, the “so-called” swine flu first appeared in 1918. It was responsible for the death of between 50 - 100 million people worldwide. It primarily claimed the lives of healthy adults between the ages of 20 and 40. Why? Because it caused something called a cytokine response - what is this?

It’s a term used to describe when the body’s immune system goes into overdrive at defending our organism against harmful external viruses. Basically, the more healthy a body is, the harder it fights off external threats. The harder it fights, the more it goes into overdrive until it, basically, send the system into tilt.

Weaker immune systems, as found in younger people, children, babies and elderly people have slower and weaker responses, which placed them out of the common death claiming range.

I didn’t find any documented evidence that suggested the 2009 Influenza A claimed any lives due to the cytokine response. However, I did find evidence that there is a mutated version of the Influenza A, which has claimed the lives of (maybe) 6 people worldwide. Whether these facts, figures and data are correct is unknown; since we cannot rely on the Media nowadays to duly and accurately inform us.

However, there are a lot of factors that need to be considered when we look at the 1918 death toll. It was war time. Hygiene standards, on a global scale, were much lower. People suffered with malnutrition in areas that nowadays don’t. Troops were constantly on the move, and in great numbers on a global scale, hence the contamination process was greatly aided and speeded up. There was less awareness about the contamination process itself. Little was known about viral infections in general. We didn’t have micro-medications we have today. The list could go on.

Of course, there would also be conspiracy theorists who would have us believe the H1N1 was a laboratory manufactured virus, as a type of biological warfare; specifically designed to eliminate a certain age group of the population in order to end, and win, the war. Personally, I do not believe this as there were too many casualties on all sides.

The 1918 Influenza A didn’t just disappear as many would have us believe. It apparently weakened itself over time, as many viruses do, but lay dormant somehow; somewhere. It reappeared again in 1937.

The scandalous facts about the 1937 outbreak is that scientists in the UK and the United States used patients, they describe as “feebleminded” at various psychiatric institutions as human guinea pigs for live anti-viral testing. Yes, you read it correctly. Scientists injected about a third of the patients, across various institutions at various locations, with a vaccine containing “live” Influenza A virus; no doubt without written consent. http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/pdf_extract/35/1/55

If you follow the link above, to the article written in 1941, what amazes me is how scientists report patients were inoculated, and I quote, 5 to 10 weeks before the onset of an Influenza epidemic. We have two choices here: a) we can think that any serious Influenza, at that time was considered an Influenza A, or that somehow the relaunch of the Influenza A (of which by definition of gene content there is only one associated with the Swine flu) was premeditated in a bid to use more humans as guinea pigs.

In 1946/47, there was another outbreak of Influenza that apparently started in Japan. People were inoculated with a milder strain of the H1N1 vaccine but it proved to be a complete failure. Even nowadays, the H1N1 vaccine will not protect you from the swine flu nor any of its mutations thereof.

In 1957, 1968, 1976, 1977 there were more minor outbreaks of various types of Influenza; including the H1N1 that struck people who hadn’t had it previously. Of course, then, closer to the 21st century we’ve had the Avian Influenza and now we have the new H1N1 again.

An interesting fact I came across is that in 2008, in a bid to study the Avian Influenza virus, scientists exhumed the body of a man who died during the 1918/1919 pandemic. He was buried in a lead coffin, which could have very well preserved the H1N1 virus. I’ll leave it to you to think what you will.

So, I come to the modern day 2009 Influenza A. You’ve all heard about it. You all know what it is and how it can affect you. You all know what steps you can take to avoid contamination and spreading. So, I’m not going to go into any details here. What I will say though is that more people have died from a common flu than from the Influenza A.

It’s the Media hype that has blown it out of control and disseminated fear into our minds with a little help from the pharmaceutical companies who have an invested interest in making billion and billions of dollars; not just in the short term, with the vaccines, but in the long term as well, with the potential side effects the vaccines could have in a large proportion of individuals that have it.

Current Manufacturers of the Influenza A (H1N1) vaccine

To date, I have found 5 major manufacturers of the Influenza A vaccine. They are: Sanofi Pasteur, Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Limited, CSL Limited, ID Biomedical Corporation of Qebec and MedImmune, LLC. The vaccine produced by ID Biomedical Corporation of Qebec is being distributed by Glaxo Smithkline Beecham.

As a matter of curiosity, I went digging around for financial reports for all the pharmaceutical companies mentioned above. As with all businesses, they suffered losses due to the economic crisis the world has been facing. Stocks had fallen. Yet, they are rising again slowly since the advent of the “hearsay” Influenza A epidemic.

As anyone who deals in stocks and shares will know, the more a rumour is spread, the more likely it is a product will sell. The more likely it is that a product will sell, the more likely it is a company will find investors or the more likely it is prices of stock will go up and the company makes money all round.

Far be it for me to be a sceptic, but in a world where economic growth is at an all time slow and world markets show no sign of immediate recovery, perhaps the banks and the big boys behind wall street, (and most of the global power), found a window of opportunity to increase their bank balances, recover their losses and guarantee an income for the coming years.

How? Simple, develop a vaccine that, theoretically, does little or nothing against the Influenza A, yet injects people with toxic substances that in the long term might have detrimental effects on their health, and ensure they require more medication in the future. More medication equals more guaranteed income for the pharmaceutical companies. I hate to say this but it’s also a way to control the population count.

I’d like to just say here that I am not in any way a conspiracy theorist. I look at the given facts before coming to any conclusions. The facts, in this case, are exemplified by the Polio vaccine first introduce in 1955. By 1961, the vaccine was declared unsafe for human consumption because it was thought to be contaminated with a substance called SV40, a carcinogen that came from infected monkeys.

Yet, that very same vaccine continued to be used well into the year 2000 on a global scale. Hundreds of millions of people worldwide have potentially been exposed to this silent killer. In some, the effects have become apparent. Sufferers in whom cancer has already developed, relatives of people who died and/or some people who have become or became paralysed, because of the vaccine, have carried out lawsuits. You can find more information on the net by searching for links between polio vaccines and paralysis lawsuits.

With the new H1N1 vaccine, as far as I am aware, the pharmaceutical companies have a clause that stipulates they cannot be brought into a court of law should anyone suffer any side effects. This clause alone begs the question: “Why?”

It’s my humble opinion we do not question enough what we allow medics to put into our bodies. We do not investigate enough. We place too much trust in the hands of our doctors and the Media. It doesn’t take a medical degree to ask what something is and what it is used for, and nowadays we have no excuse. Information is everywhere.

Prior to the current manufacturers of the vaccine H1N1, Baxter International Inc. developed a vaccine that contained H5N1 (avian flu virus) and H3N2 (seasonal flu viruses.) In experiments, ferrets were found to die from the vaccine, which suggested the H5N1 virus was live. If this substance had been injected into humans it could have had disastrous consequences.

Human beings could have acted as incubators for a new crossbreed virus that could have then been transmitted from one being to another. The vaccine went out. It was discovered by pure accident. However, it is now said that all known batches of the Baxter vaccine have been recalled.

This is the list of ingredients contained within the vaccines that I’ve been able to find so far. As you will see, different pharmaceutical companies are using slightly different ingredients. I have no idea if there are other “unmentioned” ingredients as I cannot get my hands on all the packaging labels that come with the actual vaccines (as of yet.)

Please note that anyone suffering with egg allergies should not go anywhere near the vaccine.

Know these ingredients - What are they?

I am not going to describe every ingredient in detail, as I am sure you know what many of them are; like sucrose (sugar), gelatin (which can cause allergies in some people), ovalbumin (egg or egg protein), sodium (salt) and so on. However, I am going to bring to your attention the most important ones that need very careful reflection.

Formaldehyde

As many of you probably already know, Formaldehyde is a colourless and odourless substance that was once used in building materials; in resin form for insulating foam, as an adhesive and to treat textiles. Its primary function was to act as a fungicide, sterilizer and germicide. It’s also used in morgues and laboratories (in liquid form) as embalming fluid and to preserve bodies. Formaldehyde is actually naturally present in the atmosphere in very small quantities because every living organism produces and emits a tiny amount of it.

Different people have different reactions to over-exposure to Formaldehyde and, of course, the severity of symptoms depends on the amount of exposure.

According to the U.S Goverment’s National Cancer Institute website information and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (World Health Organization) - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/risk/formaldehyde - http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Monographs/vol88/index.php - studies have been carried out, on a global scale, since the 1980s to see just what the effects of Formaldehyde are.

In 1980, Formaldehyde was found to cause nasal cancer in rats. In 1987 Formaldehyde was declared a cancer causing substance for humans (carcinogen) and found to be associated with different types of cancers. In fact, in 1988 and again in 2003, scientists in the United States and the United Kingdom found a serious relationship between over-exposure to Formaldehyde and deaths caused by lung cancer in industries where Formaldehyde was being used as a chemical agent. (http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Monographs/vol88/mono88-6B.pdf) - In Denmark, Formaldehyde was associated with lung, kidney, colon and nasal cancer in a study carried out by Hansen and Olsen. http://www.springerlink.com/content/w632326683541334/ The list and studies go on. I suggest you follow the links if you’re interested in the full research findings.

Pregnant women who were exposed to Formaldehyde have been known to give birth to deformed babies. There were known cases studied in China, UK and US. In fact, just recently I was talking to a friend about the UK being one of the first countries in the world to pay compensation to mothers, of deformed babies through exposure to Formaldehyde, who sought legal action.

Why would the World Health Organization, any Government or any Health organisation knowingly approve that we be injected with a substance, (no matter in how much of a small dosage), that they themselves officially declared as a carcinogen?

Tween 80 (also known as Polysorbate 80)

First of all, Tween 80 is a drug used to trick the blood brain barrier to open up so that nano-drugs can be carried through into the brain. However, in 2005, it was discovered that this drug can cause hives, breathing problems and a sharp enough drop in blood pressure to actually be fatal. Aside from this, it was found to cause infertility in mice.

I quote: http://www.whale.to/v/tween_80.html

According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, which is part of the United Nations, scientists from the organization are developing vaccines specifically to damage fertility as a method of contraception. A suggested ingredient for the vaccine is tween 80 (polysorbate 80): “In a preferred embodiment the vaccine comprises oil, preferably a biodegradable oil such as squalene oil. Typically, the vaccine is prepared using an adjuvant concentrate which contains lecithin in squalene oil. The aqueous solution glycoprotein is typically a phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution, and additionally preferably contains Tween 80.” (Fertility Impairing Vaccine And Methods of Use’ This application claims the benefit of U. S. Provisional Application No. 60/070,375, filed January 2,1998, U. S. Provisional Application No. 60/071,406, filed January 15,1998.) Exploring VaccinesYou will see, from what I have highlighted in red and orange that a couple of questions arise:

a) Are the pharmaceutical companies trying to control the number of future births; on a global scale? b) Or, are they trying to subsequently cash in on fertility treatments? Think about this, with each treatment costing between 2,000 to 5,000 US dollars, just how much would they stand to cash in on if a third of the global population was sterile? After all, is it not nearly every couple’s dream to have a child?

Thimerosal and Mercury

Thimerosal is a type of Mercury used as a preservative. So, I am shocked to find that the H1N1 has both Thimerosal and Mercury contained within the vaccine. Both elements have been declared dangerous to health and linked to autism in children, cardiovascular disease in adults, brain tissue damage and other malfunctions of the nervous system.

For years, the FDA in the United States has admitted that Mercury is toxic. For years, it has been reviewing what quantities can be excreted from the body safely. Yet, regardless of the amount of research carried out, the answer is: we still don’t know. Scientists still don’t know. For years the FDA has been campaigning to remove Thimerosal altogether from vaccines. Yet, pharmaceutical companies are still selling vaccines with Mercury and Thimerosal, and the FDA are still approving them. Why?

You can read full reports on Thimerosal and Mercury here:http://www.naturalnews.com/011764.htmlhttp://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/VaccineSafety/UCM096228

Triton X-100

Commonly used as a spermicide. Also used as a detergent and a solvent for vinyl record cleaning.

Polyethylene glycol

I find the inclusion of this ingredient very interesting. Apparently, to date, it is a known anti-chemical carcinogenesis in laboratory rats. However, whether or not it can prevent the development of cancer in humans is not yet known because, (as far as I could find out), there haven’t been any human clinical trials yet.

I have to wonder, though, if the inclusion of this substance in the H1N1 vaccine is part of a live clinical trial. Think what you will.

Squalene - Although it’s not on the official packaging, we know it’s being used.

Squalene is an oil that derives from sharks’ liver primarily and some plants as well. It’s used in cosmetics because it’s easily absorbed through the skin and doesn’t leave an oily after-feeling. In medicine, it’s added to vaccines to stimulate the immune system’s response because it enhance the production of what are known as CD4 memory cells. However, squalene has never been approved for this usage by the FDA.

I quote: http://www.novaccine.com/vaccine-ingredients/results.asp?sc=27

"Animals injected with squalene always develop painful, incurable, autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus according to investigative journalist Gary Matsumoto, former reporter for NBC and Fox News. (Gary Matsumoto, Vaccine A: The Covert Government Experiment That's Killing Our Soldiers and Why GIs Are Only the First Victims, Basic Books, 2004) Dangers of squalene have been known since 1956 when Dr. Jules Freund, creator of this oil-based adjuvant, warned that animals injected with his formulation developed terrible, incurable conditions: allergic aspermatogenesis (stoppage of sperm production), experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (the animal version of MS), allergic neuritis (inflammation of the nerves that can lead to paralysis) and other severe autoimmune disorders. Squalene (MF 59) was added to the anthrax vaccine. This vaccine caused tens of thousands of U.S. Iraq Desert Storm soldiers to suffer permanent neurological damage called “Gulf War Illness.” (Jane Bergermeister, Adjuvants to be added to H1N1 vaccine by Baxter and WHO programme body for “endless loop of self-destruction, 2009) Squalene (MF 59) enzyme is not approved for human consumption but waived for use in the H1N1 vaccine. It also potentially causes “undiscovered side effects” according to Jefferson, Mercola and others. "Deborah Dupre, Examiner.com -- 8/18/2009

Mono Sodium GlutamateMono Sodium Glutamate is known as an excitotoxin. It’s an additive that’s been used in food for centuries; to make it taste better. The truth behind it is, it kills off certain neurons in the brain by overstimulating them. Russell Blaylock, an American neurosurgeon, has made a very convincing connection between continuous exposure to Mono Sodium Glutamate, in adults, to (and I quote) an accelerated onset and degeneration in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's, and ALS as well as headaches, seizures, strokes and AIDS dementia. http://curezone.com/foods/msg.asp http://www.russellblaylockmd.com/Polyethylene glycol

Usually used as a laxative or as a substance to coat suppositories with. It is also found in cosmetics because of its lubricant nature.

Nonylphenol ethoxylate

Mainly used in detergents, as emulsifiers and found in some pesticides, Nonylphenol ethoxylate is a man-made chemical that was officially declared dangerous to the environment by the European commission and the WWF. It was found to have serious detrimental effects on the female reproductive organs in aquatic species and also found to lower the sperm count in male species. Just how it affects humans is still relatively unknown.

In 1992 the Paris Commission urged the European parliament to recommend that the use of Nonylphenol ethoxylate be completely phased out of domestic cleaning substances by the year 2000. You can read the full International report here: http://www.ngo.grida.no/wwfneap/Publication/briefings/Nonylphenol.pdf

As far as I discovered, in 2003, the product was banned in Europe by the European Parliament. Here’s the Directive:http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:178:0024:0027:EN:PDF

Gentamicin Sulfate

This is an antibiotic. However, in some people it can cause side-effects of vomiting, nausea, increased salivation, joint pain, visual disturbances, dry eyes, tinitus, vertigo etc. You can see the full description on the packaging details here: http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/gentamicin+sulfate

United States Government National Cancer Institutehttp://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/risk/formaldehyde

International Agency for Research on Cancer (World Health Organization) http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Monographs/vol88/index.php (http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Monographs/vol88/mono88-6B.pdf)

United States Department of LaborOccupational Safety and Health Administration http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/formaldehyde/

Formaldehyde and cancer morbidity among male employees in Denmarkhttp://www.springerlink.com/content/w632326683541334/

Warnings: (Courtesy of the following websites:)http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/archive.cgi?read=150745

FLU VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ALL PREGNANT WOMEN (CDC)The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP): Vaccination of pregnant women is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). < http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm#flu > http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm#fluFDA approved manufacturers package insert: Manufacturers warningsSanofi Pasteurs Fluzone package insert, WARNING www.vaccinesafety.edu/package_inserts.htm" TARGET="_blank">http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/package_inserts.htm>www.vaccinesafety.edu/package_inserts.htm>8.1 Pregnancy Category C: Animal reproduction studies have not been conducted with Fluzone vaccine. It is also not known whether Fluzone vaccine can cause fetal harm when administered to a pregnant woman or can affect reproduction capacity. Fluzone vaccine should be given to a pregnant woman only if clearly needed.8.2 Nursing Mothers: It is not known whether Fluzone vaccine is excreted in human milk. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk, caution should be exercised when Fluzone vaccine is administered to a nursing woman.13.1 Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility: Fluzone vaccine has not been evaluated for carcinogenic or mutagenic potential, or for impairment of fertility.NOTE: CDC does not require providers to inform pregnant women of the Thimerosal (mercury) content.

Appendix A - Sanofi Pasteur Packaging Insert -

Courtesy of the FDA - http://www.fda.gov/downloads/biologicsbloodvaccines/vaccines/approvedproducts/ucm182404.pdf

sanofi pasteur 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent VaccineHIGHLIGHTS OF PRESCRIBING INFORMATIONThese highlights do not include all the information needed to use Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine safely and effectively. See full prescribing information for Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine.Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine Manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur Inc. Suspension for Intramuscular Injection Initial US Approval: 1980----------------------------RECENT MAJOR CHANGES------------------------------ Indications and Usage ( 1 ) [9/2009] Dosage and Administration ( 2.2 ) [9/2009]----------------------------INDICATIONS AND USAGE------------------------------- Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is an inactivated influenza virus vaccine indicated for active immunization of persons 6 months of age and older against influenza disease caused by pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. (1)--------------------------DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION------------------------- Based on currently available information the vaccination regimen is as follows:Children ▪ 6 through 35 months of age (0.25 mL dose, intramuscular injection): - Two 0.25 mL doses approximately one month apart. (2.2) ▪ 36 months through 9 years of age (0.5 mL dose, intramuscular injection): - Two 0.5 mL doses approximately one month apart. (2.2) ▪ 10 years of age and older - A single 0.5 mL dose, intramuscular injection. (2.2) Adults - A single 0.5 mL dose, intramuscular injection. (2.2)---------------------DOSAGE FORMS AND STRENGTHS--------- Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine, a sterile suspension for intramuscular injection, is supplied in four presentations: ␣ Prefilled syringe, 0.25 mL, no preservative; distinguished by a pink syringeplunger rod (3) ␣ Prefilled syringe, 0.5 mL, no preservative (3) ␣ Single-dose vial, 0.5 mL, no preservative (3) ␣ Multi-dose vial, 5 mL, contains thimerosal, a mercury derivative, added as a10 September 2009_v0.3 LE5860-5862-------------------------------CONTRAINDICATIONS------------ ␣ Severe hypersensitivity to egg proteins or any component of the vaccineor life-threatening reactions after previous administration of any influenza vaccine. (4, 11)-----------------------WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS--------------------- ␣ If Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) has occurred within 6 weeks ofprevious influenza vaccination, the decision to give Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine should be based on careful consideration of the potential benefits and risks. (5.1)␣ Immunocompromised persons may have a reduced immune response to Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine. (5.2)------------------------------ADVERSE REACTIONS-------------- Adverse reaction information is based on studies conducted with seasonal trivalent Influenza Virus Vaccine. ␣ Most common (≥10%) local reactions were soreness at injection site,tenderness, pain, and swelling. (6) ␣ Most common (≥10%) systemic events were malaise, headache, andmyalgia. (6)To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Sanofi Pasteur Inc., Discovery Drive, Swiftwater, PA 18370 at 1-800-822-2463 (1-800-VACCINE) or VAERS at 1-800-822-7967 or http://vaers.hhs.gov.------------------------------DRUG INTERACTIONS-------------- ␣ Do not mix with other vaccines in the same syringe or vial. (7.1) ␣ Immunosuppressive therapies may reduce the immune response toInfluenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine. (7.2)-----------------------USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS------- Information in this section is based on seasonal trivalent Influenza Virus Vaccine manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur Inc. (Fluzone vaccine). ␣ Safety and effectiveness of Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 MonovalentVaccine have not been established in pregnant women or nursing mothersor children <6 months of age. (8.1, 8.3, 8.4) ␣ Antibody responses to Fluzone vaccine were lower in the geriatricpopulation than in younger adults. (8.5) See 17 PATIENT_COUNSELING_INFORMATION.preservative. Each 0.5 mL dose contains 25 mcg mercury. (3, 11 ) _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________FULL PRESCRIBING INFORMATION: CONTENTS*1 INDICATIONS AND USAGE 2 DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION2.1 Preparation for Administration2.2 Recommended Dose and Schedule 3 DOSAGE FORMS AND STRENGTHS 4 CONTRAINDICATIONS 5 WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS5.1 Guillain-Barré Syndrome 5.2 Altered Immunocompetence 5.3 Preventing and Managing Allergic Reaction 5.4 Limitations of Vaccine Effectiveness6 ADVERSE REACTIONS6.1 Clinical Trial Experience 6.2 Post-Marketing Experience 6.3 Other Adverse Events Associated with Influenza Vaccines7 DRUG INTERACTIONS7.1 Concomitant Administration with other Vaccines 7.2 Immunosuppressive Therapies8 USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS8.1 Pregnancy 8.3 Nursing Mothers 8.4 Pediatric Use 8.5 Geriatric Use11 DESCRIPTION 12 CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY12.1 Mechanism of Action 13 NON-CLINICAL TOXICOLOGY13.1 Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility 14 CLINICAL STUDIES14.1 Immunogenicity in the Adult and Geriatric Population14.2 Immunogenicity in Children 15 REFERENCES 16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING16.1 How Supplied16.2 Storage and Handling 17 PATIENT COUNSELING INFORMATION*Sections or subsections omitted from the full prescribing information are not listed.Confidential/Proprietary Information Page 1 of 19Revised: September 2009sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 FULL PRESCRIBING INFORMATION: 2 1. INDICATIONS AND USAGE3 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is an inactivated influenza virus vaccine 4 indicated for active immunization of persons 6 months of age and older against influenza disease 5 caused by pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. 67 2. DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION82.1. Preparation for Administration9 Inspect Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine syringes and vials visually for particulate 10 matter and/or discoloration prior to administration. If either of these conditions exist, the vaccine 11 should not be administered. 1213 Shake the syringe and single-dose vials well before administering the vaccine and shake the 14 multi-dose vial each time before withdrawing a dose of vaccine. 15 16 2.2. Recommended Dose and Schedule17 Clinical studies are ongoing with Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine to determine 18 the optimal dosage, number of doses and schedule. 19 20 Available data show that children 9 years of age and younger are largely serologically naive to 21 the pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. (1) Based upon these data Influenza A (H1N1) 200922 Monovalent Vaccine should be administered as follows:Confidential/Proprietary Information Page 2 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent VaccineLE5860-58621 2 Children 3 Children 6 through 35 months of age should receive two 0.25 mL intramuscular doses 4 approximately 1 month apart. (1) 5 6 Children 36 months through 9 years of age should receive two 0.5 mL intramuscular doses 7 approximately 1 month apart. (1) 8 9 Children 10 years of age and older should receive a single 0.5 mL intramuscular dose. (1)10 11 The preferred sites for intramuscular injections are the anterolateral aspect of the thigh in infants 12 or the deltoid muscle of the upper arm in toddlers and young children. 13 14 The vaccine should not be injected into the gluteal region or into areas where there may be a 15 major nerve trunk. 16 17 Adults 18 Persons 18 years of age and older should receive a single 0.5 mL intramuscular dose. 19 20 In adults, the preferred site for intramuscular injection is the deltoid muscle. 21Confidential/Proprietary Information Page 3 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 The vaccine should not be injected into the gluteal region or into areas where there may be a 2 major nerve trunk. 34 3. DOSAGE FORMS AND STRENGTHS 5 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is a sterile suspension for intramuscular6 injection. [See Description (11)] 7 8 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is supplied in 4 presentations:

Prefilled syringe, 0.25 mL, no preservative, for 6 through 35 months of age; distinguished by a pink syringe plunger rod; Prefilled syringe, 0.5 mL, no preservative, for 36 months of age and older; Single-dose vial, 0.5 mL, no preservative, for 36 months of age and older;Multi-dose vial, 5 mL, for 6 months of age and older, contains thimerosal, a mercury derivative, added as a preservative. Each 0.5 mL dose contains 25 micrograms (mcg) mercury.17 4. 18 Do not administer Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine to anyone with a known severe hypersensitivity to egg proteins or any component of the vaccine or life-threatening reactions after previous administration of any influenza vaccine. [See Warnings and Precautions 21 (5) and Description (11)]

1 5.1. Guillain-Barré Syndrome2 Recurrence of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) has been temporally associated with the 3 administration of influenza vaccine. The decision to give Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent 4 Vaccine to individuals who have a prior history of Guillain-Barré syndrome should be based on 5 careful consideration of the potential benefits and risks. 6 7 5.2. Altered Immunocompetence8 If Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is administered to immunocompromised9 persons, including those receiving immunosuppressive therapy, the immune response may be 10 diminished. 11 12 5.3. Preventing and Managing Allergic Reaction13 Appropriate medical treatment and supervision must be available to manage possible 14 anaphylactic reactions following administration of the vaccine. 15 16 5.4. Limitations of Vaccine Effectiveness17 Vaccination with Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine may not protect all recipients. 1819

6. ADVERSE REACTIONS 20 Sanofi Pasteur’s Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine and seasonal trivalent Influenza21 Virus Vaccine (Fluzone®) are manufactured by the same process. The following sub-sectionsConfidential/Proprietary Information Page 5 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 summarize safety data from clinical experience with seasonal trivalent inactivated influenza 2 vaccines, including Fluzone vaccine. 3 6.1. Clinical Trial Experience4 Adverse event information from clinical trials provides the basis for identifying adverse events 5 that appear to be related to vaccine use and for approximating the rates of these events. However, 6 because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse event rates 7 observed in the clinical trials of a vaccine cannot be directly compared to rates in the clinical trial 8 of another vaccine, and may not reflect the rates observed in practice. 910 Adults and Geriatrics 11 In placebo-controlled studies among adults, the most frequent side effect of vaccination is soreness 12 at the vaccination site (affecting 10%–64% of patients) that lasts <2 days, local pain and swelling. 13 These local reactions typically are mild. Fever, malaise, myalgia, and other systemic symptoms can 14 occur following vaccination and most often affect persons who have had no prior exposure to the 15 influenza virus antigens in the vaccine (e.g., young children). These reactions begin 6–12 hours 16 after vaccination and can persist for 1–2 days. Placebo-controlled trials demonstrate that among 17 older persons and healthy young adults, administration of split-virus influenza vaccine is not 18 associated with higher rates of systemic symptoms (e.g., fever, malaise, myalgia, and headache) 19 when compared with placebo injections. (2) 20Confidential/Proprietary Information Page 6 of 19

sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 Children 2 The 2003-2004 formulation of Fluzone vaccine was studied in 19 children 6 to 23 months of age 3 and in 12 children 24 to 36 months of age, given in 2 doses one month apart. Local reactions and 4 systemic events were solicited for 3 days after each dose. Most local and systemic reactions were 5 mild. The proportions of local and systemic reactions in children were similar to the proportions 6 in adults. No reported local or systemic reaction required a therapeutic intervention other than 7 analgesics. (3) 8 9 6.2. Post-Marketing Experience10 The following additional events have been reported during post-approval use of Fluzone vaccine. 11 Because these events are reported voluntarily from a population of uncertain size, it is not always 12 possible to reliably estimate their frequency or establish a causal relationship to vaccine 13 exposure.14 15 Blood and Lymphatic System Disorders: Thrombocytopenia, lymphadenopathy 16 17 Immune System Disorders: Anaphylaxis, other allergic/hypersensitivity reactions (including 18 urticaria, angioedema) 19 20 Nervous System Disorders: GBS, convulsions, myelitis (including encephalomyelitis and 21 transverse myelitis), facial palsy (Bell’s palsy), optic neuritis/neuropathy, brachial neuritis, 22 syncope (shortly after vaccination), dizziness, paresthesiaConfidential/Proprietary Information Page 7 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent VaccineLE5860-5862

7. DRUG INTERACTIONS97.1. Concomitant Administration with Other Vaccines10 There are no data on the concomitant administration of Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent 11 V accine with seasonal trivalent influenza vaccines. 12 13 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine should not be mixed with any other vaccine in 14 the same syringe or vial.15 16 If Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is to be given at the same time as another 17 injectable vaccine(s), the vaccine(s) should always be administered at different injection sites. 18 19 7.2. Immunosuppressive Therapies20 If Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine is administered to immunosuppressed persons 21 or persons receiving immunosuppressive therapy, immunologic response may be diminished. 22Confidential/Proprietary Information Page 9 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621

8. USE IN SPECIFIC POPULATIONS 2 Sanofi Pasteur’s Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine and seasonal trivalent Influenza3 Virus Vaccine (Fluzone vaccine) are manufactured by the same process. Available information 4 for Fluzone vaccine is provided in this section. 5

8.1. Pregnancy6 Pregnancy Category C: Animal reproduction studies have not been conducted with Influenza A 7 (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine or Fluzone vaccine. It is also not known whether these 8 vaccines can cause fetal harm when administered to a pregnant woman or can affect reproduction 9 capacity. Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine should be given to a pregnant woman10 only if clearly needed. 11 12

8.3. Nursing Mothers13 It is not known whether Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine or Fluzone vaccine is 14 excreted in human milk. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk, caution should be 15 exercised when this vaccine is administered to a nursing woman. 1617

8.4. Pediatric Use18 Safety and effectiveness in pediatric subjects below the age of 6 months have not been 19 established. The immune response and safety of Fluzone vaccine was evaluated in 31 children 20 between the ages of 6-26 months. [See Adverse Reactions (6.1), Clinical Studies (14)] 21 22

1 2 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monvalent Vaccine is a sterile clear to a slightly opalescent 3 suspension. 4 5 Antibiotics are not used in the manufacture of Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine. 6 7 All presentations of Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine do not contain latex. 89 12. CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY1012.1. Mechanism of Action11 Influenza illness and its complications follow infection with influenza viruses. Global 12 surveillance of influenza identifies yearly antigenic variants. For example, since 1977, antigenic 13 variants of influenza A (H1N1 and H3N2) viruses and influenza B viruses have been in global 14 circulation. Specific levels of hemagglutinin inhibition (HI) antibody titer post-vaccination with 15 inactivated influenza virus vaccines have not been correlated with protection from influenza 16 virus infection. In some human studies, antibody titer of ≥1:40 have been associated with 17 protection from influenza illness in up to 50% of subjects. (4) (5) 18 19 Antibodies against one influenza virus type or subtype confer limited or no protection against 20 another. Furthermore, antibodies to one antigenic variant of influenza virus might not protect 21 against a new antigenic variant of the same type or subtype. Frequent development of antigenicConfidential/Proprietary Information Page 12 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 variants through antigenic drift is the virologic basis for seasonal epidemics and the reason for 2 the usual change of one or more new strains in each year's influenza vaccine. 34 13. NON-CLINICAL TOXICOLOGY513.1. Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility6 Neither Fluzone vaccine nor Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine have been evaluated 7 for carcinogenic or mutagenic potential, or for impairment of fertility. 89

14.1. Immunogenicity in the Adult and Geriatric Population15 In an observational study of the immunogenicity of Fluzone vaccine in a geriatric population 16 (median age: 72.0 range: 61 to 86 years of age) compared with younger adults (median age: 38.0 17 range: 19 to 59 years of age; racial distribution was 2 Asian, 11 Black, 106 Caucasian, and 2 18 other; no gender data were available), the following results were obtained using a single-dose of 19 the year 1999–2000 formulation of Fluzone vaccine. (See Table 1.) Antibody levels were 20 obtained on the day of and just prior to vaccination and approximately 21 days after vaccination. 21 (4)Confidential/Proprietary InformationPage 13 of 19sanofi pasteur 10 September 2009_v0.3 449/454 Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine LE5860-58621 Table 1: Geometric Mean Titer (GMT) and Percentage (%) Achieving an HI Titer ≥1:40 2 (N = 58-62) in Adults and the Elderly (after vaccination with Fluzone vaccine)3 N = Number of participants 4 5

14.2. Immunogenicity in Children6 In a study using 2 doses of Fluzone vaccine (2003-2004) in 31 healthy children 6–36 months of 7 age (3 Black, 23 Caucasian, 2 Hispanic, and 3 other; 15 were male and 16 were female), the 8 following immunogenicity results were obtained on day 0 before vaccination and approximately 9 14 days after dose number 2. (See Table 2.)

Friday, 29 January 2010

As you all know, I have a lifelong friend who has cancer, the big C; the word everyone is afraid to mention and the “condition” hardly anybody ever wants to openly talk about because half the world population doesn’t know how to deal with it; especially when a loved one has it.

Most of the time, we’d rather pussy foot around the subject; whispering behind corners, feeling sorry for our loved ones and ourselves, feeling a little helpless and maybe even feeling somewhat like useless bystanders rather than approach the matter in an openly and natural manner.

We put the lives of our loved ones, and our lives, in the hands of doctors and specialists or Gods of our chosen faith hoping that someone or something somewhere will make a miracle happen. In some contrived way, I guess we hope that if a miracle happens then we’ll never have to deal with what actually is and what potentially might yet come.

We forget though that doctors and specialists can make wrong predictions. They are only human. They are not infallible. They do not have all the answers. The human body is the most complex machine there is. Even in this day and age, we still do not know how it works in a concise manner. Moreover, we still don’t know how much the power of the mind can influence the body.

Linsey gave you her story in an earlier post, last year in November, on my wall. To give you a very brief lowdown. She had both kidneys removed along with part of her spleen, pancreas, one adrenal gland and some lymph nodes. By law of average, her chances of survival were very slim from thereon in, (according to her doctors), but she’s still here. Thank goodness! She’s living proof that doctors’ predictions can be wrong. She’s also living proof that the mind and the will are stronger than any disease. That is a miracle!

In November, she told us the cancer has now spread to the liver and that time is running out. I have to question if this diagnosis is just another obstacle to be overcome. Linsey tells me to be a realist and says you can’t avoid the facts staring you in the face. She quite openly speaks about the songs to be sung at the party we’re suppose to have at her funeral. However, after her recent visit to Madeira, something in me can’t help but question whether she can continue to make miracles happen.

Linsey had always wanted to come to Madeira to visit me but with one thing and another, it hadn’t ever been possible. Yet, in a very moment when the impossible seems truly impossible, it not only became possible but very much a reality. Linsey came to Madeira with her husband Paul.

Linsey told you she’d arrived at the airport in Madeira with her pride hurt because she got here in a wheelchair; meaning with airport assistance. Yet, what I saw was a beautiful, brave young woman who’d gotten on a plane despite being warned her blood pressure was too low to travel. She’d had dialysis that morning; prior to the trip. She was warned against travelling. Yet, against all odds, she was determined to make it - and she did. That was a miracle.

Even the rain that had been falling for two months stopped in time for her arrival. That was another small miracle from up above. Or, was it the collective prayers said by a beautiful group of friends of mine who'd been rooting for Linsey to have a perfect time on the island?

I’d arranged a room for Linsey and Paul in the hotel where I work. Yet, my beautiful colleagues, without being asked, took it one step further and made her experience even more perfect by upgrading her to a suite; giving her what she describes as her “Pretty Woman” moment. The text I got said she felt like a movie star. Is it another little miracle or is it the collective wish of beautiful people who’s only wish was to help fulfill someone’s dream and make it perfect.

There were times she felt tired and needed to rest back at the hotel, but they were nothing compared to the effort she put into walking more than she’d apparently walked in the last two months. That was another miracle of mind over matter.

There were times I noticed the tiredness and frustration in her eyes that she was desperately trying to hide with a smile, but they paled in comparison to the radiant glow and the emotions she showed when she saw the dolphins around the boat we went out on. When we were given the all clear to go in the sea and swim with them, wild horses couldn’t have held her back. She was the second person off the boat and in the sea. All the apprehensions, fears, anxiety and nerves she’d felt the day before, about the trip, had gone. It was another miracle of mind over matter.

The sea may have been cold but it had calmed down considerably in comparison to what it had been over the previous two months, and we had plenty of sunshine; another miracle from above? Or, more answered prayers? Of course, we mustn’t forget the miracle itself of actually swimming with dolphins in the wild.

Within that same miracle, there was another one. Whilst Linsey and I floated there hand in hand, just the two of us, watching the dolphins swim under us, next to us and in front of our faces, the dolphins apparently were circling around us. As Linsey questions in her note, were they protecting us? Or, could it be that they knew this was her lifetime dream and that they alone could make it come true?

We heard them communicating to one another or were they actually speaking to us, as well, in their own way. They put on a show that marvelled even our gracious biologist and captain who hadn’t seen the dolphins in such a joyful mood for quite some time. Were we witnessing another miracle in the making? I believe so.

The biggest joy for me was watching Linsey eat. Seeing her eat a little more than she apparently normally manages to eat was, for me, a miracle in itself. I was willing each mouthful to go down and stay on her. I never thought I’d hear myself say that!

The bravest moment of all was when she had to face having dialysis in Madeira; with unknown doctors and nurses. It was the first time she’d had dialysis abroad. Like she said “Needs must”. She could have walked away and waited till she got home but she didn’t. No matter how scary it got at one point, she stuck it out and faced it head on.

Yet, no matter how scary it was to face for the first time, it’s also a symbol and testimony to the fact that Linsey and people with needs like Linsey don’t have to hide and be house bound or country bound simply because they need treatments.

It’s not easy. It’s painful. It’s scary. Yet, for the love of her husband and her little girls, she gets out of bed every morning and chooses to fight to live. I know she would like to climb mountains (metaphorically speaking) but just being awake and there to give them her love every day is a miracle; just like it is for any one of us.

Surviving the way she has for this long may be a miracle; then again it may not. It could just be the sheer determination, will-power and love driven resolve of a young woman who has so much to live for. My point is, when we find a window of joy that is bigger than the fears and the illnesses themselves, no matter what they may be, our mind can drive us with an incredible strength that even we’re unaware of. It can push us beyond what the physical body is experiencing and maybe, just maybe, it’s enough to hold on to to make miracles happen.

Wednesday, 6 January 2010

Thanks to Vaz, Catherine & Claudine, one of my articles, along with some of my artwork, has been published in the the "Voyager Spirit", which is the London College of Spirituality's ezine. I can only express my deepest gratitude to you all. Thank you so much xx - Here's the link.

It is widely believed that, between approximately 15 to 20 million years ago, a large number of sub-oceanic volcanic eruptions took place which led to the emergence of some islands (among which speculatively Madeira) and the destruction of others; such as the much debated continent of Atlantis.

Scientists continue to debate to this day whether Madeira was born from the lava flow or whether Madeira was already here. I am a firm believer that Madeira was already here. If the continent of Atlantis truly existed, I believe this small island is a living remnant of that ancient legend. However, I am not here to make anyone believe anything. My articles are merely to offer you some insights. Ultimately, it will be up to you, the reader, to decide what you believe and what you do not.

As a testimony to the island’s volcanic origin, there are numerous peaks with breath taking valleys. The most notorious valley is that of “Curral das Freiras”, which is a sleepy little town where, originally, in the 17th century Madeiran nuns founded a convent. Their intention was to have their own religious retreat and find refuge from the French pirates who invaded the island at the time.

Curral das Freiras is situated in the heart of a dormant volcanic crater of nearly 5 kilometres in diameter. It is surrounded by six mountain peaks, which are all composed of calcareous rock found to contain marine fossils. Coincidently, the highest peak, on the island, is Pico Ruivo, which is about 1800 meters above sea level.

In São Vicente it’s possible to visit the “caves” that stand as a witness to the original lava channels, which are still visible to this day. They are naturally preserved as part of an ongoing ecological awareness project run by the Autonomous Region of Madeira. Another testimony of Madeira’s volcanic origins can be found in Santo da Serra where there is yet another extinct volcanic crater, called “Lagoa de Santo da Serra”, which nowadays serves as a natural water reservoir.

If you have read any account of the history of Madeira, you will have learnt thatthe island was discovered in 1419 or 1420 by João Gonçalves Zarco, Tristão Vaz,(who were both members of the D. Henrique infantry) and Bartolomeu Perestrelo,who, together, discovered Porto Santo about a year earlier. However, it is fairer to saythese seafarers only colonialised Madeira and Porto Santo; turning them into Portuguese territories. They did not discover the islands. In fact, historical evidence proves Madeira was on the map long before the Portuguese captains arrived.

There is a Portolan navigational chart, dated 1351, preserved in Florence, Italy, also known as the “Portolano Laurenziano Gaddiano of the Laurentian Library”, which clearly shows Madeira on the map and proves that Madeira had been discovered by Portuguese vessels under Genoese captains; a long time before Zarco disembarked on its shores.

Unfortunately there is a lack of sufficient concrete evidence but there is potential speculation that the Phoenicians discovered Madeira at a very early period and were regular visitors to the unchartered and hostile territory that Madeira once was.

Pliny the Elder, also known as Gaius Plinius Secundus, (AD 11 – 68 AD Approx), a famous navigator and army commander for the Roman empire talks about the“Purple islands”, which he named as such after the purple coloured dye that was obtained from the sap of the island’s dragon trees. The geographical position he gives, with reference to distances (in latitude and longitude) from Mauretania and the Fortunate Islands, (which were the Canaries), may seem to indicate Madeira.

The interesting thing to note here is that, during Pliny’s time, purple dye was quite rare. It was the most prestigious and most expensive dye that could be purchased. It was only used for dying the robes of the dignitaries. It was an old tradition said to befound in Homer’s ancient Greece.

The general consensus is that the discovery of purple dye is accredited to the Phoenicians, which would tie in with what was mentioned above.

Another historical piece of evidence to suggest Madeira’s discovery, prior to Zarco et al, is given by Plutarch who, when referring to the military commander Quintus Sertorius, relates that after his return to Cadiz, following a military reverse inMauretania,

“he met with seamen recently arrived from the Atlantic islands,two in number, divided from one another only by a narrowchannel, and distant from the coast of Africa ten thousandfurlongs. These are called the Islands of the Blest; rains fall thereseldom, and in moderate showers, but for the most part they havegentle breezes, bringing along with them soft dews, which renderthe soil not only rich for plowing and planting, but so abundantlyfruitful that it produces spontaneously an abundance of delicatefruits, sufficient to feed the inhabitants, who may here enjoy allthings without trouble or labor. The seasons of the year aretemperate, and the transitions from one to another so moderate,that the air is almost always serene and pleasant.

Here, I am going to give you a different perspective of Atlantis; the Atlantis that is very much alive in all who believe in it so strongly; like myself. Some may choose to believe and others may choose to be sceptical but we all need to believe that there is more than one reality.

I'd like to briefly introduce you to Edgar Cayce.

Edgar Cayce, whom someone mentioned in one of the forum postings’, is considered one of the greatest “sleeping prophets” to have existed in modern times. I say “sleeping” because he use to place himself into some kind of self-induced sleep state by lying down on a couch, closing his eyes, and folding his hands over his stomach. This state of relaxation and meditation enabled him to place his mind in contact with all time and space. From this state he could respond to questions as diverse as, “What are the secrets of the universe?” to “How can I remove a wart?” His responses to these questions came to be called “readings” and contain insights so valuable that, even to this day, individuals have found practical help for everything from maintaining a well-balanced diet and improving human relationships to overcoming life-threatening illnesses and experiencing a closer walk with God.

... and I would like to share this reading with you:

Reading Topic - OCCULT: ATLANTIS

TEXT OF READING 364-10

This psychic reading given by Edgar Cayce at his home in Pinewood on Lake Drive, Virginia Beach, Va., this 28th day of April, 1932, in accordance with request made by those present.

1. GC: You will have before you the information given through this channel on the lost continent of Atlantis. You will please continue with this information, and answer the questions which I will ask regarding same.

2. EC: Yes. In understanding, then, in the present terminology, occult science, or psychic science - as seen, this was the natural or nature’s activity in that experience, and not termed a science - any more than would be the desire for food by a new born babe. Rather the natural consequence. This explanation may of necessity take on some forms that may possibly be confusing at times, but illustrations may be made through the various types of occult science, or psychic manifestations, that may clarify for the student something of the various types of psychic manifestations in the present, as well as that that was natural in this period.

3. There is, as has been oft given, quite a difference - and much differentiation should be made - in mysticism and psychic, or occult science as termed today.

4. From that which has been given, it is seen that individuals in the beginning were more of thought forms than individual entities with personalities as seen in the present, and their projections into the realms of fields of thought that pertain to a developing or evolving world of matter, with the varied presentations about same, of the expressions or attributes in the various things about the entity or individual, or body, through which such science - as termed now, or such phenomena as would be termed - became manifest. Hence we find occult or psychic science, as would be called at the present, was rather the natural state of man in the beginning. Very much as (in illustration) when a baby, or babe, is born into the world and its appetite is first satisfied, and it lies sleeping. Of what is its dreams? That it expects to be, or that it has been? Of what are thoughts? That which is to be, or that which has been, or that which is? Now remember we are speaking - these were thought forms, and we are finding again the illustrations of same!

5. When the mental body (Now revert back to what you are calling science) - when the mental body, or mind, has had training, or has gone through a course of operations in certain directions, such individuals are called so-and-so minded; as one of an inventive turn, and trained; one of a statistician turn, and trained; one of a theologian turn, and trained; one of philosophical turn, and trained. Of what does the mind build? We have turned, then, to that that has become very material, for the mind constantly trained makes for itself MENTAL pictures, or makes for that as is reasoned with from its own present dimensional viewpoints - but the babe, from whence its reasoning? from whence its dream?

From that has been taken in, or that that has been its experience from whence it came? Oft has it been said, and rightly, with a babe’s smile ‘Dreaming of angels’, and close in touch with them - but what has PRODUCED that dream? The contact with that upon which IT has fed! Don’t forget our premise now from which we are reasoning! and we will find that we will have the premise from which those individuals, or the entities, reasoned within the beginning in this land. (We are speaking of Atlanteans, when they became as thought forces.) From whence did THEY reason?

From the Creative Forces from which they had received their impetus, but acted upon by the thought FORMS as were in MATERIAL forms about them, and given that power (will) to be one WITH that from what it sprang or was given its impetus, or force, yet with the ability to USE that in the way that seemed, or seemeth, good or well, or pleasing, unto itself. Hence we find in this particular moulding or mouldive stage, that in which there was the greater development of, and use of, that as is termed or called psychic and occult forces, or science - in the present terminology, or age.

6. Illustrating, then, that as to how this was used by those entities, those beings, in the formative stage of their experience or sojourn among that as had been created in all of its splendor to supply every want or desire that might be called forth by that being, with all of its attributes physical, mental AND SPIRITUAL at hand; for, as has been given, even unto the four hundred thousandth generation from the first creation was it prepared for man’s indwelling. As we today (turn to today), we find there the developments of those resources. How long have they remained? Since the beginning! How long has man been able to use them for his undoing, or his pleasure, or for his regeneration? Since the knowledge of some source has awakened within its psychic force, or source, of the apparatus, or the form that it takes, either in a physical or mental (for remember, Mind is the Builder - and it moves along those channels through which, and by which, it may bring into existence in whatever dimension or sphere from which it is reasoning, or reasoning toward - see) - and as these may be illustrated in the present:

7. When there is a manifestation of a psychic force, or an occult action, or phenomena, or activity in, upon, of or for, an individual, there is then the rolling back, as it were, or a portion of the physical consciousness - or that mental trained individual consciousness - has been rolled aside, or rolled back, and there is then a visioning - To what? That as from the beginning, a projection OF that form that assumed its position or condition in the earth as from the beginning, and with those so endowed with that as may be called an insight into psychic sources there may be visioned about a body its astral (if chosen to be termed), rather its THOUGHT body, as is projected FROM same in such a state; especially so when there is the induction, or the inducing of, an unconsciousness of the normal brain, or normal mental body.

Submerged - into what? Into the unconscious, or subconscious. Sub, in THIS instance, meaning BELOW - not above normal; below - SUBJECTED to the higher consciousness, or to the higher thought, that has been builded - just as sure as has a physical body been builded, from what? That as has been given from its first nucleus as passed through in its experience. Then there may be visioned by such a body, as may be called with the second sight, or with a vision, that accompanying thought body of such a one, manifesting in much the way and manner as individuals in the Atlantean period of psychic and occult development brought about in their experience. Through such projections there came about that first necessity of the division of the body, to conform to those necessities of that as seen in its own mental vision as builded (MENTAL now - Don’t confuse these terms, or else you will become VERY confused in what is being given!).

8. The mental vision by its action upon what body is being builded? On the mental body of the individual in a material world, out of Spirit, out of the ability to have all the attributes of the spiritual or unseen forces - but MATERIALIZED forces, as is necessary from the mental body in a material world MENTALLY trained to, or in, certain directions, or given directions, or following the natural bent of its threefold or three-ply body, as is seen in every individual or every entity. As these projected themselves, then we find these DEVELOPMENTS were in this portion of the development in the Atlantean period.

How were these used? In much as were from the beginning. Remember there was ever the instruction to those peoples that were to hold to that that would bring for the spiritual forces, rather than the abuses of the abilities - as those with familiar spirits, as those that spoke to or partook of the divinations of those that had passed from the earth’s plane, or those that partook of the animal magnetism - that came from the universal consciousness of animal matter as passed into its experience, in its interchange through those periods of integration and disintegration - and the spirit forces possessing those that would lay themselves open to such conditions, for these are as real as physical bodies if the attunements of the entity are such that it may vision them! and they are about you always, sure!

These, then, are entities - sure; whether animal or those endowed with the soul - until they pass through those changes - as there ever has been, see? Also there are those that ever make for those channels in the psychic and occult (we are speaking of, through which man - as it reached that stage, or that position that it became farther and farther from its natural sources, through the same CHARACTER of channel may it communicate with that from which it is a portion of, or the Creative Forces), and hence the terminology arose as ‘Good Spirits’ and ‘Bad Spirits’; for there are those that partake of the earth, or of the carnal forces, rather than of those forces that are of the spiritual or CREATIVE.

Those that are destruction are of the Earth. Those that are constructive, then, are the good - or the divine and the devilish, bringing for those developments in their various phases. Hence the greater development of that called occult, or psychic forces, during the Atlantean period - and the use of same, and the abuse of same - was during its first thousand years, as we would call light years; not the light of the star, but the sun goes down and the sun goes down - years. That brought about those cycles, or those changes. Hence we have that which has been given through many of the sources of information, or the channels for individuals - and in those, these, the entity - as a voice upon waters, or as the wind that moved among the reeds and harkened, or again as when the morning stars sang together and the sons of God beheld the coming of man into his own, through the various realms as were brought by the magnifying of, or the deteriorating of, the use of those forces and powers as manifested themselves in a MATERIAL area, or those that partook of carnal to the gratification of that that brought about its continual HARDENING and less ability to harken back through that from WHICH it came, and partaking more and more OF that upon which it became an eater of; or, as is seen even in the material forces in the present: We find those that partake of certain elements, unless these become very well balanced WITH all SOURCES - Of what?

That of which there were the first causes, or nature, or natural, or God’s sources or forces are. Hence ELEMENTS - not rudiments; elements - as are termed in the terminology of the student of the anatomical, physiological, psychological forces within a body - GERMS! Sure they are germs! for each are as atoms of power - From what? That source from which it has drawn its essence upon what it feeds. Is one feeding, then, its soul? or is one feeding its body? or is one feeding that inter between (its mental body) to its own undoing, or to those foolishnesses of the simple things of life? Being able, then, to partake OF the physical but not a part of same - but more and more feeding upon those sources from which it emanates itself, or of the SPIRITUAL life, so that the physical body, the mental body, are attuned TO its soul forces, or its soul source, its Creator, its Maker, in such a way and manner, as it develops.

9. What, then, IS psychic force? What IS occult science? A developing of the abilities within each individual that has not lost its sonship, or its relation to its Creator, to live upon - or demonstrate more and more through phenomena of whatever nature from which it takes its source, for that individual activity of that entity itself through the stages of development through which it has passed, and giving of its life source that there may be brought INTO being that which gives more knowledge of the source FROM which the entity ESSENCE (Isn’t a good word, but signifies that intended to be expressed; not elements, not rudiments, but ESSENCE of the entity itself, ITS spirit and soul - its spirit being its portion of the Creator, its soul that of its entity itself, making itself individual, separate entity, that may be one WITH the Creative Force from which it comes - or which it is! of which it is made up, in its atomic forces, or in its very essence itself!) emanates; and the more this may be manifest, the greater becomes the occult force.

10. To what uses, then, did these people in this particular period give their efforts, and in what directions were they active? As many almost as there were individuals! for, as we find from the records as are made, to some there was given the power to become the sons of God; others were workers in brass, in iron, in silver, in gold; others were made in music, and the instruments of music. These, then, we find in the world today (Today, now - we are reasoning from today). Those that are especially gifted in art - in its various forms; and a real artist (as the world looks at it) isn’t very much fit for anything else! yet it is - What? An expression of its concept OF that from WHICH it, that entity, sprang - through the various stages of its evolution (if you choose to call it such) in a material world, or that which it fed its soul or its mental being for its development through its varied experiences IN a material world. These, then, are but manifestations (occult forces) in individuals who are called geniuses, or gifted in certain directions.

Read it two or three times if you need to but I will try to clarify some points and elaborate on this subject and more in the next part.

I am going to sidetrack a little from the main topic of where Atlantis is, in order to bring you the people of Atlantis. I noted that a lot of you have the feeling that you are from there; some may have even had past life regression experiences, similar to myself.

Who are Atlanteans? …

Atlanteans are considered the first people to have ever inhabited the earth. It is not sure that they called themselves Atlanteans and there are several theories surrounding their appearance…in fact speculation is such, that their very existence is a mystery in itself.

One of these theories, is a spiritualist one, which claims that the first Atlanteans were, in fact, Lemureans who inhabited the continent of Atlantis from 250,000 BC until 10,000 BC, as a challenge and divine experiment to see whether celestial beings could live in a mortal body and still keep their connection with God. This theory speculates that the experiment was started and terminated 5 times before the final destruction, and disappearance, of the island, simply because the incarnated celestial beings fell into the age old trap of greed, wars, corruption, black magic and other such atrocities.

Essentially, Atlanteans were, originally, a peace loving people, a united community who drew together as a singular unit in order to help each other. Each member of the community was adept in one, or more, of the Holistic Therapies area. Some would be adept in the art of Reiki healing, some in the art of Crystal healing, some could use the infinite powers of their mind to heal others; other Atlanteans would be adept in kinesiology, some the art of visualisation, most Atlanteans lived by the principles laid out in Ayurveda, and so forth and so on, but they all shared the common communication language of telepathy and they drew their communal power and strength from pyramids and crystals.

Telepathy is considered a means of non-verbal communication that occurs when souls vibrate at the same frequency and on the same level. It could be said that souls have a hierarchy of transmission frequencies, along which path they can communicate with some people, in this manner, yet not with others.

It is said that there are 5 types of telepathy

1) Mental Telepathy – Between mind and mind.

2) Emotional Telepathy – The connection is between the solar plexus centers of the individuals involved. It has largely to do with ‘feeling’, i.e. between people emotionally attached as in mother/child – husband/wife – groups – good friends, and in events when one ‘feels’ what has happened to the other. This form of telepathy is transmitted on the astral level. Friendliness, love, menace, fear, etc. is usually expressed this way. You can physically feel this type of telepathy in ‘the pit of your stomach’.

3) Between Soul and Soul – This is an advanced form of telepathy, where contact is made through the super conscious level of mind between souls, beyond the workings of the conscious mind.

4) Between two or three of these aspects of telepathy simultaneously.

5) Verbal Telepathic Communication – Which is words converted to symbols for use by the mind, which must be decoded back into ideas or thoughts as received.

However, it is believed that, even nowadays, we all have this telepathic ability. It’s just that some people become too caught up in their own thoughts that their “enlightened” energy channels become blocked thereby disengaging the ability to transmit. Also, fear of receiving unrecognisable, or unidentifiable thoughts from another person disengages the ability to receive.

One of the most detailed descriptions of the Atlanteans’ use of a mysterious instrument, called the Great Crystal, was given by Edgar Cayce, who mentioned it many times.

The crystal was housed in a special building oval in shape, with a dome that could be rolled back, exposing the Crystal to the light of the sun, moon and stars at the most favourable time. The interior of the building was lined with non-conducting metal or stone, similar to asbestos or Bakelite, a thermosetting plastic.

The Crystal itself, the Tuaoi Stone, or Firestone, was huge in size, cylindrical in length, and prismatic in shape, cut with six sides. Atop the crystal was a moveable capstone, used to both concentrate-incoming rays of energy, and to direct currents to various parts of the Atlantean countryside. It appears that the Crystal gathered solar, lunar, stellar, atmospheric and Earth energies as well as unknown elemental forces and concentrated these at a specific point, located between the top of the Crystal and the bottom of the capstone.

The energy was used for various purposes. In the beginning it was used as purely a spiritual tool by initiates who could handle the great energy. The early Atlanteans were peaceful people. As they developed more physical material bodies, they used the crystal to rejuvenate their bodies and were able to live hundreds of years while maintaining a youthful appearance.

Later the Great Crystal was put to other uses. Currents of energy were transmitted throughout the land, like radio waves, and powered by these, crafts and vehicles traversed the land, through the sky and under the sea at the speed of sound.

By utilization of other currents originating from the Great Crystal, the Atlanteans were also able to transmit over great distances the human voice, and pictures, like modern television. In the same manner, even heat and light could be directed to specific buildings or open arenas, giving illumination and warmth by seemingly invisible means.

There is some speculation that the first pyramids were built over 10,643 years ago.

Even though it is very hard to accept, during their time on earth, Atlanteans became the forefathers of technology, medicine, warfare and science etc., more so than our society today. At the height of their societal corruption and during their darkest hours, they created nuclear weapons, they cloned animals and people, they waged wars in the name of blood thirst glory and so forth and so on.

Laura Knight-Jadczyk tells us …

The Cassiopaeans have emphasized the importance of Frequency Resonance Vibration. They have also indicated that the Self Serving Negative Hierarchy meddles with it by way of rituals, by way of “beliefs,” by way of tampering with DNA via “abduction” processes, and so forth. They have indicated that the Service to Others alignment acts in accordance with the natural order of things.

Fulcanelli tells us over and over again that Plato was an initiate, and he drops clues everywhere that the “Egyptian” version - as it is promulgated - is not the true source of higher positive knowledge. The clues are given to us in Plato’s writings that the Atlanteans were an “evil empire” that attempted to conquer the world, and were defeated by the “Athenians,” giving rise to the archetypal legend of Perseus and Andromeda.

In fact, it is speculated that around 50,000 BC – 52,000 BC, one of the periods when one of Atlantis’ experimental eras came to a close, it did so because of its gross misuse of power; it is said that a series of nuclear bombs were set off underground, which caused the earth to shift on its axis and divide the continent up into 5 islands, one of which is, possibly, the island that Plato mentioned in his account that we read about in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series.

According to Diana Cooper, during the last era of Atlantis a temple was raised in the mountains of Atlas, which was surrounded by seven mountainous peaks that represented the seven spiritual laws of:

The law of one – no separation from God

The law of Karma – there is always a spiritual way to work things out

The law of manifestation – thoughts, words and deeds attract experiences into the physical life

The law of Grace – Unconditional love, compassion and forgiveness

The law of Responsibility – Taking responsibility for own actions, thoughts, words etc.

The law of unconditional love – Love and acceptance without boundaries and;

The law of intention – gaining clarity and understanding in order to find resolutions.

Which were meant to be a reminder of the purpose of Atlantis and its people. Sadly, once again greed took over and this time the island was flooded for good, as we all know, but it is believed that a great proportion of Atlanteans survived and scattered to the four corners of the world.

Constitutionally and chemically, Atlanteans were said to have certain DNA make-up comparable to lizards and certain amphibians, in fact it is believed that they possessed fin like scales, on their skin, similar to those of fish, in order to breath. In conformity with this theory it has been proposed that those with Blood type RH 0 negative are the original descendants of Atlantis.

I found this article I thought you may find interesting with regards to this:http://think-aboutit.com/health/DISCUSSIONOFBLOODGROUPSANDTHHUMANSPECIES.htm

The genii is about to be released, as it becomes general knowledge that human cloning has been practiced for generations.

In fact, prior to the current historical epoch - beginning about 200,000-years-ago - there was direct intervention against the peoples of Earth for that very reason, which is demonstrated by the Rh+ factor in humans. Genetic experimentation (largely directed by EBEs) was so successful, that most of Earth’s remaining original inhabitants were eventually wiped out.

Nearly 85% of all human beings have RH positive blood. Which merely indicates that their red blood cells contain a substance called the RHesus (rhesus) blood factor. Simply put, their positive blood contains a protein that can be linked to the Rhesus monkey. It is acknowledged that blood factors are transmitted with more exactitude than any other human or animal characteristic. It is not generally known from where the negative RH factor derived, although tantalizing evidence exists that it arrises from genetic experimentation a little over 5,000 years ago.

The highest concentration of RH negative blood occurs in the Basque people of Northern Spain and Southern France, and in the Eastern/Oriental Jews. Only 15% of the entire world´s population is known to have the RH negative blood factor. While it is known that RH negative blood - (type ‘O’) is the purest blood known to mankind, it is not known from where the negative factor originates, as it is generally theorized by evolutionists that there is an unbroken bloodline from early human prototypes (pre-humans) to present day human beings.

When we separate the ‘O’ types into ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ we find that ‘O’ negative (the universal donor blood) constitutes less than 7% of the world´s population. Science at this very time is attempting to create a synthetic RH negative ‘O’ blood, but without success. For while the protein in positive blood can be cloned, that of negative blood cannot - which is quite interesting, and may be indicative of an alien origin, or more probable, from early genetic experimentation during previous advanced human civilization(s).

Some similarities among those who have RH negative blood -

· Predominance of green or hazel eyes that change colour like a chameleon, but also blue eyes, piercing.* True red or reddish hair* Low pulse rate & low blood pressure* Keen sight or hearing* ESP, UFO connections, Abduction, Para-normal occurrences* Extra rib or vertebrae* Love of space and science* A sense of not belonging to the human race* Empathetic illnesses* Compassion for fate of mankind* A sense of a ‘mission’ in life* Unexplained body scars* Capability to disrupt electrical appliances

None the less, despite all this information, my personal experience is, that as an Atlantean, I have always been able to recognise other Atlanteans and I am always drawn towards them, more so than other people.

Long live the “original” philosophy of Atlantis ….

I will get aroud to writing Part 4 now that I have more research material and the motivation to do so.

It was noted that the earliest documentation we have of Atlantis is by Plato written in 355BC but that it supposedly existed 9000 years prior to that date.

We noted that Plato’s legend had Egyptian origin, because Solon visited Sais, where he “was very honourably received” by the priests of the goddess Neith and the story was related to him. We, also, noted that in mythology Poseidon divided the continent up into 10 regions, each to be ruled by a son, so, theoretically Atlantis was much bigger than described by Plato … BUT …..

…..the narrative continues:

“That sea (the Atlantic) was then navigable, and had an island fronting that mouth which you in your tongue call the Pillars of Hercules; and this island was larger than Libya and Asia put together; and there was a passage hence for travellers of that day to the rest of the islands, as well as from those islands to the whole opposite continent that surrounds that the real sea. . . . In this Atlantic island, then, was formed a powerful league of Kings, who subdued the entire island, together with many others, and parts also of the Continent; besides which they subjected to their rule the inland parts of Libya, as far as Egypt, and Europe also, as far as Tyrrhenia. The whole of this force, then, being collected in a powerful league, undertook at one blow to enslave both your country and ours, and all the land besides that lies within the mouth. This was the period, Solon, when the power of your state (Athens) was universally celebrated for its virtue and strength; for surpassing all others in magnanimity and military skill, sometimes taking the lead of the Greek nation, at others left to itself by the defection of the rest, and brought into the most extreme danger, it still prevailed, raised the trophy over its assailants, kept from slavery those not as yet enslaved, insured likewise the most ample liberty for all of us without exception who dwell within the Pillars of Hercules. (Bibliography: Timaeus & Critias – Plato)

In 1909, in response to an ever emerging interest in the lost Continent, an anonymous contributor to the Times, pointed out that there was resemblance between Plato’s Atlantis and the island of Crete. This anonymous contributor based his whole theory on the argument that the Egyptian priest’s legend reflected the geographical make-up of the island of Crete, Cretan sea-power and the pirate attacks that had occurred along the Egyptian coast during the Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties. His theory spread rapidly. It was very liked and adopted by many archaeologists, for many centuries.

In fact, in 1912 Paul Schliemann, grandson of Heinrich Schliemann, the famous archeologist, who excavated Mycenae and the legendary city of Troy, revealed that his grandfather, on his deathbed, produced a mysterious bequest for any of his heirs willing to devote their life to proving the existence of Atlantis. He claimed that he had spent years following up on this and he left secret letters behind, locked away in a bank safety deposit box.

Schliemann Jr claimed he had found Phoenician hieroglyphics to support his grandfather’s theories but the truth is the Phoenicians used a phoenetic writing system. He claimed he had found artefacts in the ruins of ancient Egypt but the truth is nothing was ever produced, as evidence and given modern science an technology, the whole theory was called a hoax and people continued to prefer the theory of the Crete being Atlantis.

Lets see why …

Crete is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean after Sicily, Sardegna and Cyprus. It is about 160 miles long, and varies in breadth from about 35 miles in the middle to 10 between Retimo and Sphakia, and only 6 miles in one place between the Gulf of Mirabello and the coast of Hierapetra. The northern coast is characterised by deep gulfs whilst the southern coast is very mountainous and rocky. Mount Psiloriti, (8159 feet), reknowned for it’s dense forestry and, also known as the ancient Mount Ida, can be found almost in the middle of a ridge of hills that go from east to west of the island.

“sea above two thousand. And this district of the whole island was turned towards the south, and in an opposite direction from the north. The mountains around it, too, were at that time celebrated, as exceeding in number, size, and beauty all those of the present time, having in them many hamlets enriched with villages.” (quote)

The ancient capital of Crete was situated at Knossos, near Candia, on the north. In ancient days the island was four days’ sail from Egypt and two from Cyrenaica. It may well be said of Crete, as of Atlantis, that “there was a passage hence for travellers of that day to the rest of the islands, as well as from those islands to the whole opposite continent", which we saw in the narrative quoted above and the prosperity of the island kingdom, of Crete, depended on its sea trade, until after bad relations with the Egyptians, Crete was overrun with raids and the Cretan sea traders eventually vanished to give way to the Phœnicians.

However, during its prime time, Crete held supremacy in sea fairing and commerce. It was the prime-trading link between the Middle East, Asia and Europe. This, of course, is all in a nutshell, as there is far too much more history which time and space does allow me to go into here.

Crete was, also, famous for its sacrificial bullfights; as was Atlantis; and the method by which both civilisations caught the bull, (i.e. without weapons), was another similarity used to support the Cretan / Atlantis theory.

“As there were bulls grazing at liberty in the temple of Poseidon, ten men only of the whole number, after invoking the god to receive their sacrifice propitiously, went out to hunt swordless, with staves and chains, and whichever of the bulls they took, they brought it to the column and slaughtered it.” (quote)

Archaeological evidence does suggest that the island has been inhabited since the 6th or 7th millennium BC, there’s still a little dispute among scientists, about the accuracy of these dates. Evans, a renowned archaeologist who excavated Knossos discovered hand made ceramics dating back to the 5th millennium BC, which, (for him), marked the beginning of Cretan civilisation. He named this period, in history, the “Minoan Era” after King Minos, who in Greek mythology was a semi-legendary king of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa.

There is, also, a theory which claims that when the Greek island of Minoan Santorini erupted it sent out a huge tidal wave which hit the north coast of Crete, mainly Elounda, where artefacts are still hidden under the sea but can’t be retrieved due to a ban on diving in Eloundan waters. Rumour has it that the volcanic ash buried remnants of the old continent.

Ok, it’s time for me to just point out a few things here:

1) Even if artefacts, described and documented, as having been from Atlantis, were, supposedly, found in this region, given our knowledge of Cretans as leaders in sea fairing and commerce … could it not be possible that the artefacts found were, in fact, something like a stock inventory for ancient day import-export or even goods purchased from the continent of Atlantis, for European, or global, distribution. Could it be, at that time, that Crete was used as the first, and original, free trade zone? … Remember they were the trade supremacy between Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

2) Solon visited Egypt over a thousand years after Crete had been stripped of its ancient supremacy as a maritime power, and the aged priest of Sais evidently repeated to him traditions regarding it. Umm…. I’m thinking time frames and calendars do not coincide here, just as Kenneth, quite rightfully pointed out in the last forum, please read his comment if you have not done so already, it will help to clarify a few points.

3) Plato told us that Poseidon founded the continent of Atlantis and divided it up amongst his sons for ruling. King Minos was not one of Poseidon’s sons; he was the son of Zeus.

4) Crete is too small in dimensional size, even if we only refer back to Plato’s account. In actual fact he told us the island was 300 miles by 200 miles.

5) Crete is in the Mediterranean Sea and not the Atlantic Ocean, which is where we discovered the continent, derived its name from.

There is no doubt about Crete’s supremacy, ancient history, glory and pitfalls but that Crete is Atlantis … I do not believe so …